NPS Photo / VIP C DeKalb A wide variety of species await the visitor from the lower sagebrush community, through the pinyon-juniper woodland and up to the oak transition zone. Individual species differ in number each year according to rainfall and weather conditions. Micro-ecosystems abound as topography offers varied growing conditions. Tall south-facing sandstone cliffs give protection and warmth, allowing the opportunity to discover flowering plants year-round. Seeps and springs encircled by rock bluffs protect lush fern gardens. The desert annuals have adapted to the arid environment through a series of different strategies. Many plants, including wildflowers such as hairy golden aster, have small leaves to reduce the amount of transpiration. While exhaling water through stems and leaves can help keep plants cool, desert growing plants must balance transpiration with the arid conditions that they grow in. Their leaves have “hairs” to interrupt wind flow and shade the leaf’s surface. Other flowering plants like the desert four o’clock have developed thick, waxy coverings on the leaves and stems to reduce the amount of water loss. Flowers bloom during the wetter spring and fall seasons and typically avoid the summer heat and drought. Using another strategy, some plants like evening primrose, often seen along Rim Rock Drive, bloom during the cooler evenings and nights and are pollinated by night flying insects such as moths. 
NPS Photo / VIP C DeKalb Red FlowersSeveral recognizable flowers bloom in bright red colors. Paintbrush is a broad term that refers to over 200 different species, several of which occur in the monument, and many of them have a bright scarlet color. Other notable red flowers include Claret-cup cactus blooms and Scarlet Gilia, whose blooms resemble a trumpet shape.
NPS Photo / VIP C DeKalb Orange FlowersThe most prominent orange flower you’ll come across is the desert globemallow. Globemallow plants grow up to 3 feet tall and produce bright orange bowl-shaped flowers in the spring.
NPS Photo / VIP Carla DeKalb Yellow FlowersThere are many flowers that use yellow coloration to attract pollinators. These include plants like the yellow bee plant, hairy golden aster, and some prickly pear cactus blooms! Some of our invasive species also have yellow flowers, like yellow sweet clover or yellow salsify. The most common golden blooms you’ll see in the fall are from the rabbitbrush. By waiting until the fall to bloom they get more attention from pollinators, since they have less competition.
NPS Photo / N Scarborough Blue/Purple FlowersBlue, indigo, and shades of purple are also popular colors for wildflowers. Colorado four-o’clock is a leafy plant that opens large purple flowers near that specific time each day. They have adapted to life in the desert by developing a waxy covering on their leaves and stems which prevents water loss by evaporation. Tansy aster and multiple varieties of penstemon flower also use purple. Purple is also a common color for many thistles, both the native and invasive ones.
NPS Photo / VIP C DeKalb Pink FlowersPink-colored flowers (not necessarily in the Pink family of flowers, Caryophyllaceae) can be found on cactus blooms, as mentioned earlier, but also on other, less prickly plants. The invasive species red stem filaree and Russian thistle both have pink flowers, as well as native plants like the wooly locoweed and desert phlox.
NPS Photo / N Scarborough White FlowersNot every wildflower has a bright color. Many plants produce flowers that are white! The Sego lily, the state flower of Utah, is one of these. Some, like the pale evening-primrose, use the white to better stand out at night, when they get pollinated by moths and other nocturnal insects. |
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Last updated: March 20, 2025